“Araña” will represent Chile in the race for the 2020 Oscars and Goya awards

"Araña" (Spider), the film that marks the return of Andres Wood to the big screen following the release of "Violeta Went to Heaven" in 2011, has been chosen to represent Chile in the race for the 2020 Oscars and Goya awards. The announcement was made this morning by Cultures, Arts and Heritage Minister, Consuelo Valdés, at the residence of the Spanish Ambassador to Chile, Enrique Ojeda, where government officials also held a farewell celebration for the Chilean delegation to the 67th edition of the San Sebastián International Film Festival (September 20 to 28).

“Today we are announcing the film that will represent Chile in two of the most prestigious film awards in the world: the Oscars and the Goyas. This selection and participation is not only synonymous with better marketing conditions and powerful visibility for the winning feature film, but also translates into worldwide recognition of the works of Chilean film makers, the domestic cinema industry, and our culture and country in general,” said Minister Valdés.

With this announcement, the film will now gain access to Cultures, Arts and Heritage Ministry funding for promotional purposes, through the Audiovisual Development Fund, with a view to receiving the nomination of the respective Academies and subsequent awards. 

In the case of the Oscars, films released in the country of origin between October 1, 2018 and September 30, 2019 are eligible to apply to the Best Foreign Language Film category. In the case of the Goya Awards, feature films released between November 1, 2018 and October 31, 2019 are eligible. 

The voting process was carried out by the 2020 Selection Committee, which consisted of 154 people separated into 14 groups representing the different disciplines of audiovisual work (Directors, Producers, Art Directors, Costume Designers, Film Editors, Film Score Composers, Special Effects, Screenwriters, Actors, Make-up artists, Directors of Photography, Sound Engineers, Animation and Academics), made up of specialists appointed by the Art and Audiovisual Industry Council, which was based on the list of members of the Chilean Cinema Academy.

The return of Wood

Andrés Wood returns to the big screen hand-in-hand with three former members of the Fatherland and Liberty group, as played by Marcelo Alonso, Mercedes Morán and Felipe Armas. In the film, Inés (22), her husband Justo (28) and their best friend, Gerardo (23) are part of a terrorist far right ultra-nationalist group that, through conspiracies, crimes and betrayals, wishes to overthrow the elected Marxist government ruling Chile at the beginning of the 1970s.

In the heat of their struggle, the three main protagonists become involved in a risky and passionate love triangle. Together they commit a political crime that changes the country's history and also entangles them in a huge act of treachery that separates them forever.

Forty years later, Gerardo reappears. And not only is he driven by revenge, but also by the obsessions of his youth: to breathe life back into the ultra-nationalist cause. A police raid on his home discovers a cache of combat weapons. Inés, today a powerful and influential businesswoman, will do whatever she can so that Gerardo never reveals her past or that of her husband.

The film was shot in Chile and Argentina, with a cast that also includes Jaime Vadell, María Gracia Omegna and Mario Horton.

Chilean delegation to San Sebastián

This morning government officials also held a farewell ceremony for the artists who will represent Chile at the San Sebastian International Film Festival, which will include the participation of 21 production studios and more than 60 professionals, as part of an expanded delegation.

On this occasion, the Cultures, Arts and Heritage Ministry will be supporting four production companies: Karina María Jury Soria; Rizoma Producciones SPA; Servicios Audiovisuales Francisco Hervé Espejo EIRL, and Giancarlo Nasi Cañas.

The films selected for the festival are as follows:

• “Vendrá la muerte y tendrá tus ojos” (Death will come and shall have your eyes), directed by José Luis Torres Leiva (Official Selection).

• “El Príncipe” (The Prince), directed by Sebastián Muñoz (Horizontes Latinos Section). The film has just won the “Queer Lion” prize at the Venice International Film Festival, and represents the first Chilean production to win this LGBT recognition).

• “Araña” (Spider), directed by Andrés Wood (Horizontes Latinos Section).

• “Algunas Bestias” (Some Beasts), directed by Jorge Riquelme (New Directors Section).

• “Shakti”, directed by Martín Rejtman (Zabaltegi-Tabakalera Section).

• “Ema”, directed by Pablo Larraín (Perlak Section).

• “Fiebre Austral” (Austral Fever), directed by Thomas Woodroffe (Nest Film Students Section).

• And “La Cordillera de los Sueños” (The Cordillera of Dreams), directed by Patricio Guzmán, the opening film in the Horizontes Latinos Section.

Europe-Latin America Co-Production Forum Awards 

• “El Cardenal” (The Cardinal), directed by Benjamín Ávila (Costa Rica-Chile).

• “Amor al Monstruo” (Love is the Monster), directed by Neto Villalobos (Chile-Argentina-Brazil).